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Oppenhoff has comprehensively advised independent pan-European private equity investor Argos Wityu on the acquisition of a majority stake in Lavatio GmbH. The company is one of the leading German full-service laundry service providers. The objective is to accelerate the company's growth and drive sustainable transformation. Argos Wityu invests together with the management of the company and BNP Paribas.

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At this year's JUVE Awards, Oppenhoff was honoured as "Law Firm of the Year for Succession, Wealth and Foundations" for the second time since 2021.

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Oppenhoff has advised Flossbach von Storch AG on its change of legal form to a Societas Europaea (SE). The change of legal form became effective upon its entry in the Commercial Register on 15 October 2024.

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On 18 October 2024, the German Bundesrat approved the Fourth Bureaucracy Relief Act (Bürokratieentlastungsgesetz, "BEG IV"). The BEG IV aims to simplify work processes and thus relieve the economy of unnecessary bureaucracy. Once adjustments in the leg-islative process have been made, there will also be considerable simplifications of the formal requirements in employment law. This article initially provides you with an overview of the formal requirements applicable under employment law and then reports on the simplifications provided by the BEG IV.

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On 5 September 2024, Hubertus Heil, Federal Minister of Labour and Social Affairs, presented the draft bill of the German Act on Compliance with Collective Bargaining Agreements (Tariftreuegesetz), which is not particularly surprising. In terms of content, however, the draft raises some concerns, as some of the provi-sions infringe Constitutional and European law. From a company perspective, the key new regulations on the digital access rights of trade unions are noteworthy. If the draft bill passes into law, all companies will be affected. Katharina Schäffer and Jörn Kuhn briefly present the draft.

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Oppenhoff has once again comprehensively advised the EIC Fund on its German investments. On this occasion, the EIC Fund invested in the start-up MindPeak GmbH together with, among others, the German lead investor ZEISS Ventures, Hamburg-based InnoVentureFund, APEX Ventures and AI.Fund.

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In light of the many challenges at present, it remains to be seen whether the legislators can be expected to take any significant action in the field of labour law during the current legislative period. Federal Labour Minister Hubertus Heil recently presented a draft bill for the long-announced Act on Compliance with Collective Bargaining Agreements (Tariftreuegesetz) in order to stop the decline in collective bargaining coverage. With this Act, he simultaneously wants to grant trade unions a digital access right to companies and restrict the possibilities for evading collective bargaining. However, this draft law is currently becoming a bone of contention for the coalition government. Its implementation therefore remains uncertain.

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We have compiled some important and exciting new developments and case law from IT law and data protection for you. We hope you enjoy reading it!

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In a landmark judgment, the European Court of Justice (ECJ, C-611/22 P and C-625/22 P) has denied the EU Commission's authority under Article 22 of the European Merger Control Regulation (EUMR) in the Illumina/Grail case. The EU Commission is not entitled to initiate or accept the referral of proposed concentrations that lack a European dimension by national competition authorities if they are not responsible under national law for reviewing these transactions.

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Oppenhoff has appointed Franziska Katterbach as a new partner in its Life Sciences/ M&A department at the Frankfurt office as of 1 October 2024. Previously, she built up the European business as Managing Director at Khiron Life Sciences, a manufacturer and distributor of medical cannabis and operator of clinics.

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Oppenhoff has advised the Saint-Gobain Group on the sale of the automotive supplier FREEGLASS GmbH & Co. KG to Hannover Finanz as part of a carve-out.

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Oppenhoff has once again comprehensively advised the EIC Fund on its German investments. This time, the EIC Fund invested in the Munich-based start-up Reverion GmbH together with, among others, the US-based lead investor Energy Impact Partners (EIP) and Honda Motor.

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Oppenhoff has provided comprehensive legal advice on the foundation of the Icon League, which was established by world-soccer star Toni Kroos and the well-known German streamer Elias Nerlich (alias Eligella or EliasN97).

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In 2018, the German legislator introduced a model declaratory action for the first time – prompted by the wave of lawsuits in the wake of the diesel scandal. Since then, mass actions have become an integral part of the German litigation landscape.

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A new ruling by the European Court of Justice (ECJ, judgment of 29.7.2024, C-298/22) focuses on the limits of the exchange of information under EU antitrust law. The Court clarifies when an exchange of information constitutes a restriction of competition "by object" within the meaning of Art. 101 TFEU.

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Oppenhoff has comprehensively advised the shareholders of the family-owned company Sassa Mode Group on the complete takeover by the Dutch HVEG Fashion Group.

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The amendment to the German Federal Immission Control Act (Bundes-Immissionsschutzgesetz, BImSchG) is in force. The aim of the amendments is to accelerate approval procedures. The expansion of wind energy, in particular, should benefit from this, without climate protection being neglected.

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The new German Foreign Trade and Payments Ordinance (Außenwirtschaftsverordnung, AWV) came into force on 23 June 2024. The new regulations only affect a few economic sectors and are partly of an editorial nature. Nevertheless, the amendment is noteworthy as it expands the controls on dual-use goods at national level and creates new criteria for incurring fines.

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On 28 June 2024, the Bundestag unanimously passed an amendment of the German Shop Constitution Act (Betriebsverfassungsgesetz, BetrVG) in order to eliminate legal uncertainties concerning works council remuneration, which has always been a complex issue. We explain the amendment and show you why this issue will remain problematic.

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Oppenhoff has advised VSE AG on the decommissioning and dismantling of the coal-fired power plant in Ensdorf, Saarland. The power plant will now be dismantled by 2027 and a new area created for industrial and commercial use.

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With some delay, the EU adopted the fourteenth package of sanctions against Russia on 24 June 2024. With this, the EU has sanctioned further natural persons and legal entities, extended the embargoes and adopted further measures to fight circumvention of the sanctions. However, the anticipated extension of (absolute) liability for foreign subsidiaries has not been included in the new regulations.

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Oppenhoff has appointed three lawyers from amidst its ranks as junior partners with effect from 1 July 2024: Moritz Coché (Employment Law), Martin Brandenburger-Nonnast (Tax Law) and Patrick Vapore (Litigation & Arbitration).

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The government is hoping to relieve the economy of bureaucracy through a multitude of individual measures. On 19 June 2024, the German government supplemented the draft of the Fourth Bureaucracy Relief Act (Bürokratieentlastungsgesetz IV, BEG IV), which also contains numerous changes of relevance to labour law. The motto is: “digital services as opposed to analogue relics”. In this second issue of our Focus on Labour Law 2024, we summarise for you the most important planned changes and, as usual, report on many practice-relevant labour law decisions and innovations.

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Oppenhoff has advised Finanz Informatik GmbH & Co. KG, digitisation partner of the Sparkassen savings banks, on the negotiation of a comprehensive company collective agreement with the trade union ver.di. The collective agreements include provisions on working hours and remuneration, pension schemes and time credit accounts. The overall package also includes comprehensive transfer regulations for employees switching to the company collective agreement.

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The reintroduction of the subsidisation of affordable housing within the framework of non-profit law has been a contested issue for years. Its reintroduction was intended to create a new dynamic in the construction and long-term social commitment of affordable housing. The draft bill of the German Annual Tax Act 2024 (Jahressteuergesetz 2024) was published on 5 June 2024. The regulations on non-profit housing fall well short of expectations and will doubtlessly miss their targets. Hopefully, there will be improvements here.

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